Lost Chronicle: Lethal Gazes
Nestled in the back alley of a village on the edge of a minor nation was the kind of hole-in-the-wall businesses that one would expect to find in the middle of nowhere like this. It was in this establishment that a warrior with an unassuming appearance had settled for the afternoon to grab a bite to eat. While the quality was nothing impressive, the place was relatively clean and, perhaps most importantly, the price was right for the mercenary. Thinking to himself, Kazuhide realized that this was why his daughter thought of him as cheap, a fact that brought a smirk to his face, but honestly he found it difficult to justify wasting money on somewhere more extravagant. Needless to say, he continued to leisurely spend the day in the remote alley, waiting to hear about his next assignment. ---- Outside of the same village was another warrior, but one that was much different than the other. This man, or rather creature, for he had not the conscience of a man, rested under a tree. He was concealed in a functional, black robe, with an ornate scarf wrapped around his face. He ran his hand through his wild, white hair while staring off into space. All seemed normal, or at least it looked that way. What one could not see, was his disturbing chakra. It was as if when he went somewhere, that he polluted the air with his very presence. There wasn't a single soul who was unable to tell that something was amiss, that chakra of his was not easily ignored. ---- The presence that was permeating through the air was unmistakably foul, so much so that even the civilians of the village had developed an air of unease. To Kazuhide though the aura that had spread across the immediate region earned a different response. "Someone really seems to be starving for attention," he thought to himself with a sigh, "That or they can't even manage the basics of controlling their presence." Either way the warrior decided that it wasn't the kind of situation he would willingly thrust himself into. On the off chance that the sudden appearance of chakra like that was a mere coincidence, wandering away in the opposite direction should be more than enough to avoid a confrontation. More than likely though, the source of that chakra was interested in starting something. If that was truly the case, then it would be preferable to distance himself from this environment, especially considering that the source of the foul air likely lacked an appropriate degree of restraint. Paying his modest bill, Kazuhide began his stroll in the opposite direction of the chakra's source, making his way down a dirt path outside of the village. ---- Keshin felt the warrior's spiritual energies. His soul was strong, emanating with power. "What's this?" He asked himself. As he got up from his reclined position under the tree, his chakra now aroused by his emotions. Keshin wasn't the best at hiding his chakra. Due to his peculiar nature, it was hard to keep his naturally dark and oppressive chakra unnoticed. After getting up, he started to walk at a brisk pace. He made his way into the village, causing most of the people to grow anxious and hide themselves. He wasn't interested in civilians, or at least he wasn't today. Rather, he wanted to taste the power he had sensed. Keshin quickly made his way through the center of the village, and was soon out the other side. Kazuhide was now in view. ---- Sighing to himself, Kazuhide turned himself around to face the approaching individual. There was little point in playing the part of the blissfully unaware warrior, so at the very least perhaps he had a chance to wrap things up quickly if he faced it directly. Calmly looking and down and the man before him, Kazuhide took pause and waited for the individual to either start a conversation or make the first move. ---- Although Keshin's chakra was spiraling, no malice could be felt from him. He met Kazuhide's eyes and smiled underneath his scarf. "Uchiha?" Was all that came from his mouth. Both his blind eye, and the one that provided a means to view the world through were locked onto Kazuhide's figure. ---- "So, that's how it was?" Kazuhide thought to himself in the face of question presented to him. "While I'm hardly in a position to critique social norms..." the swordsman began in a slightly exasperated tone, "...it's common courtesy to introduce oneself before asking for the name of another." Shifting his weight slightly, and ensuring that there wasn't anyone else in wait in the vicinity, he refocused his attention on the man. "Regardless, if your business with me amounts to either a grudge against a clan I've never been in contact with, or a invitation to some underground organization, I would encourage you to look for another target." ---- Keshin chuckled underneath his scarf. "There's no need to hide your ties to the Uchiha, and it'd be pointless anyways..." Keshin's posture relaxed a bit as he spoke. "I can already tell by your soul." Glancing off to the side for a second, he then snapped his finger. "Ah! You wanted to know who I am... Well... I'm not sure I have a name anymore. But I am a descendant of the same clan as you." He ran his hand through his hair, and met Kazuhide's eyes once again. "Now, may I know your name?" ---- "Forgive me for not being interested in the impromptu family reunion," Kazuhide commented in an unenthusiastic tone, tapping his foot a few times on the ground as he spoke, "...but I'm afraid I have no interest sharing a name with someone who can't even remember their own." Things were devolving quickly, but the dark haired man couldn't help but accelerate the outcome. "So, assuming you haven't forgotten that as well, why don't you state your purpose for approaching me?" ---- Sighing, Keshin's left hand moved from its place at his side. As he shifted his weight to the left side, he bent forwards. He assumed a curious stance with his arms hanging down, his left obviously reaching farther than his right. "I want to see that power of yours." He said, his sinister undertones echoing around the area. "If it's not too much trouble, I know you're a busy man... Business must be booming these days." Keshin joked, but his chakra was all but a joke. A dark column of malignant wind based chakra suddenly exploded around him, flinging dust and small rocks into the air. "Come..." He said, a sudden seriousness in his eyes. ---- "Such a wasteful display," Kazuhide replied tapping his foot once again, indifferent to the sudden shift in his opponent's personality. Like clockwork Keshin's visible aura of chakra began to recede in a spiraling fashion into the soil beneath the pair of combatants. Following up without delay a relatively minuscule pulse of energy, which possessed a strange composition, was released by Kazuhide. This emission of chakra, easy for anyone but a skilled sensor to overlook, severed any authority or connection Keshin may have had over the chakra that drawn beneath the surface of the earth. "Forgive me, I know an individual or two that would disapprove of your hapless pollution of the surrounding environment," the dark haired man continued with slightly arrogant tone, "Though...feel free to expending your reserves as you wish." ---- His chakra was dispelled for a moment, but such an energy could not be tamed. It soon returned to its master. "That was interesting..." Keshin mumbled as he took back his chakra. Leaning forwards, he took a small step. Then, suddenly appeared behind Kazuhide. His Kaleidoscope Eye shining an unsettling red. Keshin made an attempt to kick Kazuhide in the back, hoping to push him forwards. ---- "Hmph...seems he has some experience facing dōjutsu wielders," Kazuhide thought to himself as his opponent positioned himself outside of his line of sight before executing his attack. Despite the step being of a moderately above average speed, by Kazuhide's standards, the intensity of Keshin's chakra, even in a passive state, gave away his intentions. Spinning around to meet his opponent head on, Kazuhide intercepted the kick with back of his left forearm. Catching a glance of his enemy's eyes during his rotation, coinciding with a familiar surge of energy characteristic of most dōjutsu users, Kazuhide shifted onto the attack while his opponent's leg was still raised. Manifesting a black sword with a jagged edge with his free hand, the dark-haired warrior executed a vicious strike on par in terms of velocity to a veteran practitioner of . Uninterrupted, or avoided, the slash was on course to cleave through one of Keshin's kidneys, his liver, one of his lungs, and finally his heart. While observing the outcome of his attempted assault, Kazuhide took a fraction of an instant to analyze the situation at hand. Without a doubt pattern of Keshin's pupil was not one that Kazuhide recognized, suggesting that the eyes themselves didn't belong to anyone he had encountered previously. More importantly the hue of the Keshin's eyes are what piqued his curiosity. While the design alone would suggest his opponent was simply wielding the Mangekyō, the color in concert with the unusual nature of Keshin's chakra hinted that perhaps his opponent was in possession of an unfamiliar dōjutsu. Regardless, it was best to continue probing his opponent cautiously for the time being. ---- The speed of Kazuhide's attack was nothing short of impressive. The fact that he was able to keep track of Keshin's blistering movements, and ready a counterattack was truly a show of his marvelous skill as a warrior. But Keshin could not be so easily defeated. Locking onto Kazuhide's blade with his eye, he called upon the chakra of the entity whom he had devoured so long ago and activated the Fourth Transgression of his Seven that had awakened within him thanks to the unusual chakra of the demon combining with his own. After his opponent's blade dissipated, Keshin's feet met the ground once again. Crouching for a split-second, a pair of shadowy claws materialized on his forearms. His hands now like claws, he brought one foot forwards and made an attempt to rip through Kazuhide's shoulder. ---- "So he has to ability to erase techniques by dispersing chakra," the disarmed swordsman thought to himself as Keshin shifted back onto the attack, "While the underlying source and method of execution differ, his ability to scatter chakra is not unlike that technique." Taking a step back to buy himself an extra fraction of a moment before his opponent closed in on him with his claws, Kazuhide crossed his now free hands in front of himself. From his left hand a concentrated spark of energy manifested from the tip of his index finger in the direction of Keshin. Simultaneously, he converted the dense source of chakra with his right hand into pure heat. The combination maneuver resulted in a searing wave of natural heat that exploded forward from Kazuhide's position. The physical force of the technique alone was equivalent to a dozen delivered at point blank range, while the heat generated was enough to leave the earth before him in a molten state. Despite the execution of his techniques, Kazuhide had little hope that he dealt a decisive blow against his opponent. Leaping back a few meters as the dust settled from his assault, Kazuhide created a second sword of black chakra. Running his hand across the back of the blade, he imbued it with an innate resistance to the effects of foreign chakra. While he could use methods like this, and his attack from earlier, to circumvent his opponent's ability to undo concentrations of chakra with just his gaze, something more important had caught his attention. The presence that Keshin exuded had shifted ever so slightly when he donned those claws. Perhaps his opponent was a something like a , but the abilities he had displayed so far didn't match any known or chakra-entity for which he had familiarity. Regardless, it raised the possibility that he was up against up against a pair of opponents, rather than a single individual. "I wonder what he has up his sleeve next," the swordsman thought to himself, honing in on his opponent's presence in expectation for the next attack. ---- Smoke billowed from where Keshin had been. His chakra was gone as if Kazuhide had wiped him off the face of the planet. Not a trace was left of him, for when the dust settled, nothing was to be seen except a small crater. It would seem that Kazuhide had already won, but the fight was far from over. A current of black wind blew past Kazuhide, and then stopped to swirl in front of the spot where the two had been in combat moments before. "You've got a lot of skill... That was a nice combination of techniques." A voice said as Keshin matierlized once again. He stood facing Kazuhide. His Dōjutsu gave off an eerie sheen as he looked at him. Keshin wove a few hand signs, some that would be very familiar to his opponent. Breathing in a large quantity of air, Keshin leaned back. He then blew it all out in the form of a massive arc of wind. After the first, Keshin shot two more from his mouth. But as he shot each screaming projectile at his opponent, his right eye would crack with intensity. All three of his blades were under the effect of his Mangekyō Sharingan's signature technique. The first of the arcs was already less than a foot away from Kazuhide, and was moving at a monstrous speed. ---- The identity of the fiery assault was indeed familiar, but something was uncharacteristically awry. While it was not uncommon for practitioners of low ranking techniques to improve their use significantly, the acceleration that the fiery projectiles displayed was far beyond anything natural. Combined with Kazuhide's innate ability to perceive and isolate distortions of the natural world, and the fact that Keshin had revealed possession of a Space—Time technique moments earlier, the cause of the sudden shift in velocity was easy to deduce. A reflected off of Kazuhide's eyes as the closest of the fireballs was utterly erased without explanation. His eyes darting between the two remaining incoming projectiles they inexplicably changed trajectory and collided with one another, halting their forward progression and detonating. In the aftermath of the collision the remains of Keshin's flames were unnaturally drawn beneath the surface of the earth, not unlike the way the malignant aura was at the beginning of their battle. "While I initially assumed his dōjutsu could be likened to the Mangekyō," Kazuhide pondered for a moment, "It may be more appropriate to liken it to the Rinnegan due to the number of techniques it seems to possess." At this point it was fair to assume that if time and space could be manipulated to a degree by his opponent, then it was not unlikely that other natural forces were up for grabs as well. This was especially true if Keshin's eyes were somewhat comparable to the Rinnegan. Regardless, Kazuhide felt as if he had gained a sufficient understanding of his opponent's potential range of abilities, which allowed him finally proceed forward with confidence. Swiping his blade in front on him a slashing shockwave of force is launched in Keshin's direction, the only indication of its existence the sound of the air being cut as it closes in on Kazuhide's opponent. ---- Seeing that his techniques had been dispelled by Kazuhide's own, Keshin decided it was time to truly go on the offensive. His claws disappeared, and only his Eternal Kaleidoscope Eye was visible. Locking on to the incoming arc of force, he was able to visualize where it was roughly and how fast it was traveling. "It seems this one's true power lies in his sword." He thought to himself as the attack came screaming torwards him. But it never even came close to touching him, for his speed was far too great for such an attack to reach him. Keshin flickered for a moment, possibly too fast for even the Sharingan to track, and appeared behind Kazuhide. Keshin was using his Kojiki's second volume to increase his own speed. Despite having Eternal Eyes, blood dripped from his eye socket. Ignoring the burning sensation in his eye, Keshin made an attempt to deliver a swift chop to his enemy's neck. With his body under the effects of Kojiki, he was moving at an incredible speed. It would be quite difficult to evade or intercept such an attack. ---- With the familiar sensation of temporal distortion, this time localized throughout his opponent's body, Kazuhide could already predict the nature of Keshin's ability. If his opponent was accelerating his own flow of time, then it was possible that he was aging himself unnaturally. Without some way to counteract such a trait, continued use of this technique would just leave him in an early grave. Regardless, it was undeniable that his opponent's potential velocity had increased several times over, and that an attack delivered at that speed would be quite dangerous. Luckily, Kazuhide had several factors in his favor with regards to responding to Keshin's method of attack. The first was the distance between the pair of combatants. Prior to having his opponent close the distance between the pair, Kazuhide was standing roughly five meters away from Keshin. While seemingly insignificant, this meant that even if Kazuhide moved a paltry fourth of his opponent's velocity that he could reposition himself an entire meter before his enemy could erase the distance between them. The second advantage was the fact that he had the ability to overlap the prowess of both his visual and chakra sensory for the purpose of analyzing his surroundings. By doing so his clarity was expanded far beyond either of those senses alone, permitting him to perceive targets that would outpace the average individual. Finally, and perhaps the most critical advantage, was the fact that Keshin's attack was nearly identical in execution to his opening move. While it was common knowledge that attacking a dōjutsu wielder from behind was usually the best course of action, repeating the same strategy, especially when unsuccessful the first time, was far beyond ill advised. If Keshin had begun this battle by immediately using that level of speed, then he may have put himself in a position to score a significant blow. Alas, attempting the same angle of attack twice in a row made reacting appropriately, even when accounting for the incredible increase in speed, far too simple. Reducing the speed of his own body flicker, Kazuhide's accelerated movement left behind an afterimage as he sidestepped his opponent's intended trajectory. This afterimage, he could potentially ensure that his opponent's gaze would remain on a false target for just long enough for him to execute an attack of his own, a mere portion of a fraction of a second. Utilizing Keshin's own momentum against him, Kazuhide aimed his blade to connect with the edge of his opponent's hand the instant it would have struck Kazuhide's neck, had he remained motionless. While the speed of either of the attacks alone would be more than enough to cleanly sever fingers when met against a blade, the additive momentum of the blade and hand colliding from opposite directions was more than enough to carve through -class armor without notable resistance. Furthermore, Kazuhide's blade was previously imbued with an effect that resisted foreign chakra flow. If such a blade made contact, or potentially cut into, a body whose flow of time was being altered by the flow of chakra, then the resulting distortion could be catastrophic to the victim. In total this amounted to a multi-tiered assault, which had Kazuhide innately curious about the result should it connect. All the while though, he remained on guard to what he believed to be another inevitable ploy from his opponent. ---- When Kazuhide had flickered away, Keshin had noticed that the speed at which his opponent moved was not as quick as he anticipated. Why had he not simply moved at his full speed and prepared a counterattack. These thoughts only on Keshin's mind for a brief fraction of a second before his eyes helped him analyze the situation at hand. It appeared that by purposefully moving at a slower speed, a "clone" of Kazuhide was left behind. Perhaps to deceive Keshin into attacking the fake. But where was the real Kazuhide? As before, Keshin soon found the answer to this question. Kazuhide had placed himself in such a way to where he was temporarily hidden from his sight. A clever move. His enigmatic swordsman foe had once again brandished one of his curious weapons and attempted to cut through his enemy. Keshin deduced that his opponent had already caught on to the chakra scattering ability of his "Envy". He had sensed a difference in this blade, and came to the conclusion that attempting to shatter it as he had done to his previous sword would be futile. But there was something that his opponent seemingly had not planned for, a rather simple factor really. It was true, that if someone else had used Kojiki's Nakamatsumaki to accelerate their own speed that they would also speed up the time they would age. However, Keshin's body, after extensive usage of his Mangekyō Sharingan's third volume of Kojiki, it was basically impossible for Keshin's body to deteriorate from the effects of age. His body was, in a sense, outside of time. As he tracked Kazuhide's blade with the heightened reflexes granted by his Sharingan, and his Mangekyō Sharingan's Kojiki speeding up his being as a whole, Keshin was able to ready a defense. First, he summoned his own sword and caught Kazuhide's own with the flat of his blade by holding it perpendicular to his opponent's. Kazuhide's inferior sword would be unable to cut through the blade of Muramasa, due to its celestial origins. Shifting his sword in his hand, Keshin flipped the blade to where the sharp edge of Muramasa was now touching the shadowy weapon of his foe. Keshin's, being the stronger blade, sliced through Kazuhide's sword. It was not a result of Keshin focusing his chakra in some way, or affecting the chakra of his opponent's sword directly, the only factor in this was that Keshin's blade was stronger. After bringing his sword through his enemy's, Keshin moved into the next phase of his attack. Still moving forwards from the momentum in his attack, Keshin pivoted on his left foot. This would bring him directly behind Kazuhide. With Keshin behind Kazuhide, and his movements still being enhanced by Kojiki, a decisive blow was very possibly about to be landed. His own body, now released from Kojiki, was standing about a meter or so behind his enemy. Now, Keshin activated his Kojiki's Nakamatsumaki once again. However, he was not using it in the supplementary manner he had utilized before, but rather, an offensive usage. Kazuhide had been in Keshin's gaze for a bit, and he had locked onto his enemy. If the technique landed, Kazuhide would be bound by time itself and unable to move. Keshin had performed all these feats in a manner of a mere second or so, thanks to Nakamatsumaki. Now, he decided it was about time for his opponent to get a little experience with it. ---- For his opponent to show off his time manipulating prowess three times in quick succession, must have been truly underestimated. The sensation of the same dōjutsu being activated along with the creeping feeling of his opponent's chakra being directed at Kazuhide himself, the necessary response was all but reflexive. Gentle flames washed over Kazuhide's body in an instant, purifying and erasing the chakra of his opponent's techinque before it came contact with his flesh directly. Whether Keshin's intended goal was to accelerate Kazuhide's flow of time, or do something else altogether, was insignificant to him. The only proper course was to eradicate the encroaching aura completely. Turning around to face his opponent as the flames settled, Kazuhide drops the remains of his shadowy blade onto the ground beside him with a faint metallic clank. "It seems your sword has quite the edge," he began, taking a close look at the weapon Keshin was wielding, "I suppose the lowest grade of weapons aren't going to cut it against such an item." While he floated the idea of merely replicating his opponent's weapon for a moment, Kazuhide decided that a such a move would be far too boorish. Holding his hand out to his side a spark of energy erupted near his palm that rang out like thunder. In response a glistening blade appeared in his grasp. While likely imperceptible to anyone in the vicinity, the blade Kazuhide had drawn to himself began to silently assimilate natural energy from its surroundings. Tapping the sword three times with his free hand, he imbued the weapon with a few additional properties before pointing it towards Keshin. "For your sake, I hope your weapon has more than a sharp edge." ---- Smiling, Keshin nodded. "Yeah, it's forged from the best. Cuts through anything like it was butter." He proved this by swinging his arm down, and bringing the blade clean through a smooth stone that sat next to his foot. "But a sharp blade isn't enough, we've seen that already. I commend your skills..." Keshin couldn't help but be fascinated by this man. He had shown amazing intelligence throughout the course of their battle. "Compendium of Heaven and Earth, huh? Really suits you..." Keshin said as his Mangekyō glowed dangerously. He then reverse-summoned his sword to an unknown location, and created two swirling vortexes of dark wind. He held them like whips, and applied shape transformation to them to cause the spinning tornados to extend and grow in size. After they had reached a diameter of nine meters or so, Keshin swung his arms down to bring the windy whiplashes down onto Kazuhide. Simultaneously creating thousands of shadowy blades from the shadows of the cyclones. Both the columns of wind, and the shadowy skewers came racing torwards his opponent at a blistering speed. ----